Zimbabwe's trade unions have called a two-day national strike from this morning, ostensibly over the plummeting value of wages under rampant inflation that has left many people unable to afford the bus fare to work. But many Zimbabweans view the strike as a demand for an end to Robert Mugabe's 27-year rule. Previous attempts to call a strike have flopped, in part because of intimidation by the police and army, but also because almost anyone with a job in a country with 80% unemployment is desperate to hang on to it. If today's protest fails to prove a turning point it will also be because, in the eyes of many Zimbabweans, the political opposition has again missed the opportunity to capitalise on a surge of public anger at home and one of the periodic bursts of pressure on Mr Mugabe from abroad that followed the increasingly violent repression of the president's opponents.... http://www.guardian.co.uk

A suicide truck bomber, his deadly payload hidden under bags of flour, crashed into a police station in a Kurdish neighborhood in the disputed city of Kirkuk. At least 15 people were killed, including a newborn girl and a U.S. soldier, and nearly 200 were wounded. Several girls walking home from school were among those wounded in Monday's bombing, a possible prelude to far greater violence to this oil-rich city 180 miles (290 kilometers) north of the capital. The attack came just days after the government adopted a plan to relocate thousands of Arabs who were moved to Kirkuk decades ago in Saddam Hussein's campaign to displace the Kurds. Doctors worked in a scene of bloody pandemonium as wounded were brought to the emergency room. There was barely room to move. Many of those being treated appeared to be either very young children or schoolgirls, many crying with blood spattered on their clothes. ...http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2007-04-02-kirkuk-truck_N.htm?csp=34

The chief executive of an electronics supply company is charged with shipping closely guarded U.S. computer technology to India for use in missiles and other weapon systems. Working with Indian government officials, Cirrus Electronics founder Parthasarathy Sudarshan ordered computer equipment from U.S. manufacturers using falsified documents about their destination, federal prosecutors said. The parts were allegedly shipped to India through Cirrus offices in South Carolina and Singapore. Prosecutors say that between 2003 and 2006, Sudarshan was buying the equipment for three Indian government agencies: the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, which researches spacecraft and ballistic missiles, Bharat Dynamics Ltd., a key agency in the nation's guided missile program, and the Aeronautical Development Establishment, which is developing the Tejas combat jet. The U.S. Commerce Department restricts exports to these agencies....http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,263461,00.html

The U.S. Congressional Research Service has released a report saying President George W. Bush is misleading the public on Iraq war costs by saying funds are insufficient. Non-partisan budget experts at CRS informed U.S. Congress that the Army could maintain its wartime operations well into July 2007 with funds already provided, UPI reported. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said, "This study confirms that the president is once again attempting to mislead the public and create an artificial atmosphere of anxiety." Senator Reid added that Bush is even using scare tactics to defeat bipartisan legislation that would change the course in Iraq. "Instead of holding press events to score political points, I call upon the president to tone down his rhetoric and stop the veto threats of a bill he has not yet seen," said Reid. ...http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=4631&sectionid=3510203

Yesterday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) told CNN that that Bush’s escalation in Iraq is going so well, “General Petraeus goes out there almost every day in an unarmed humvee.” On Mon, he told radio host Bill Bennett that there “are neighborhoods in Baghdad where you and I could walk through those neighborhoods, today.” This morning, during an interview with McCain, CNN’s John Roberts rebutted McCain’s assertions, stating, “I checked with General Petraeus’s people overnight and they said he never goes out in anything less than an up-armored humvee.” He added that a new report by retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey “said no Iraqi government official, coalition soldier, diplomat reporter could walk the streets of Baghdad without heavily armed protection.” Faced with overwhelming evidence that he was wrong, McCain denied he’d ever said it: “Well, I’m not saying they could go without protection. The President goes around America with protection. So, certainly I didn’t say that.” Watch it:...http://thinkprogress.org/2007/03/28/roberts-cnn-mccain-iraq/

Sen. John McCain strolled briefly through an open-air market in Baghdad today in an effort to prove that Americans are “not getting the full picture” of what’s going on in Iraq. NBC’s Nightly News provided further details about McCain’s one-hour guided tour. He was accompanied by “100 American soldiers, with three Blackhawk helicopters, and two Apache gunships overhead.” Still photographs provided by the military to NBC News seemed to show McCain wearing a bulletproof vest during his visit. Watch it: McCain recently claimed that there “are neighborhoods in Baghdad where you and I could walk through those neighborhoods, today.” In a press conference after his Baghdad tour, McCain told a reporter that his visit to the market today was proof that you could indeed “walk freely” in some areas of Baghdad. Video: Go to “read article” then click on the video and watch it...http://thinkprogress.org/2007/04/01/mccain-iraq-stroll/